A 47-year-old Kahului man made his initial appearance in federal court Tuesday after he was arrested in connection with a series of improvised explosive devices found on Maui, one of which blew up and damaged a sport utility vehicle.

Robert Francis Dumaran, 47, of Kahului appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kenneth J. Mansfield following his arrest Saturday on a federal warrant.

“The Maui Police Department, in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, continues to actively investigate these incidents. This unified effort underscores our shared commitment to ensuring that justice is served and that our community remains safe,” Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said.

The investigation remains active and specific details cannot be released, according to an MPD news release.

“Our primary focus is to ensure that all involved parties are identified and that justice is served. We appreciate the community’s cooperation in respecting the ongoing process and avoiding speculation,” the statement continued.

Dumaran was charged by criminal complaint Saturday with one count of possessing an unregistered destructive device and one count of attempting to damage, by means of explosives, property affecting interstate commerce.

Mobile phone data collected from cell towers, fingerprints found on an unexploded device and a January 2022 search by Maui police in connection with an illegal-fireworks and drug probe led law enforcement to Dumaran.

A text message Dumaran allegedly sent outlined his destructive intentions.

On Aug. 6 at about 12:17 a.m., there was a text message from a cellphone that Dumaran allegedly used stating, “Think I gotta go set off sum explosions … make me feel better,” according to the complaint.

A third party responded one minute later, “What u going set off the grenade one” to the phone Dumaran was allegedly using.

He allegedly responded, at 12:21 a.m., “No Neva find a target yet …”

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 27. Mansfield ordered Dumaran detained without bail.

According to an affidavit authored by an agent with the FBI assigned to the Joint Terrorism Task Force, MPD officers on July 23 encountered an improvised explosive device near Lono Avenue in Kahului in the roadway by Kahului Elementary School.

“The IED contained explosive powder, a battery, and shrapnel. Dumaran’s fingerprints were recovered from packing tape used to build the IED,” according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. “If indicted and convicted of the charged offenses, the defendant would face up to ten years in prison on the unregistered destructive device charge and a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and up to 20 years on the explosives charge.”

Maui police found detonated IEDs near Kaamana Street in Kula on Wednesday. Officers and FBI agents responded to the explosion of an IED that damaged a white Kia SUV on Thursday night on Old Haleakala Highway near Aeloa Road in Pukalani.

“The complaint does not charge Dumaran in connection with either of those events,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

On Wednesday another IED, made of pipe, had been attached to a guardrail and detonated in Kula, and “caused considerable damage to the guardrail and vicinity,” according to the affidavit.

“After rendering the IEDs safe, MPD personnel sent them to the FBI Laboratory for analysis. FBI personnel trained in analysis of explosives determined the IEDs were firearms which contained explosive and incendiary material and were designed to cause, and capable of causing, destruction by explosive force,” the agent wrote.

A witness told Maui police and FBI agents that on Thursday night they saw “a flash similar to lightning and feeling the ground shake similar to an earthquake.”

“The witness reported seeing a white Kia Sportage get hit with concrete as it drove along the roadway; the concrete appeared to come from an explosion. The witness reported the Kia Sportage appeared to lift off the ground,” according to the affidavit.

The windows of the SUV were blown out, and the driver’s side of the vehicle was punctured and damaged by shrapnel.

MPD and the FBI determined that a “significant quantity of high-powered explosives had caused a nearby concrete container to explode” as the Kia Sportage was driving by.

MPD had Dumaran’s fingerprints on file after complaints about illegal fireworks from his neighbors prompted police to get a search warrant for his house in January 2022.

During that search MPD officers allegedly found “fireworks, ammunition, controlled substances, and componentry capable of being used to create IEDs.”

Dumaran’s alleged bombing spree started with the offense he is charged with.

On July 23, Wailuku patrol officers encountered an IED in the roadway on Lono Avenue near Kahului Elementary School. Within minutes, officers closed Lono Avenue between Hina Avenue and Laau Street and evacuated nearby residents. The device was rendered safe and sent to the FBI laboratory for analysis.

On Aug. 7, MPD officers encountered multiple IEDs near Kaamana Street in Kula. The next night, the IED sidelined the SUV.

On Friday, officers closed multiple roads in Wailuku and evacuated nearby residences as a precaution due to an investigative lead.

Dumaran was arrested the next day on the federal warrant for the IED that was recovered July 23.

Dumaran has 30 prior state convictions, including for felony promotion of a dangerous drug, and misdemeanor terroristic threatening and domestic violence.

He has two pending cases in state court. In August 2021 Dumaran was indicted by a Maui grand jury on two felony drug charges and one weapon charge.

In November 2020, Dumaran was charged in a 14- count indictment with multiple drug crimes.